Hunter by Blood
by arcaneocean
Summary: Detective Jude Jones was absolutely certain of three things. One, she was going to solve the murder of her parents. Two, she was an only child. Three, there was no such thing as demons or ghosts or anything supernatural. But when everything she knew turns out to be wrong, Jude starts to realize a bit too late that she might be in over her head.
1. Agents McClane and Powell

**I do not own Supernatural.**

 **Rewritten as of 1/23/2019**

 _"I am the fire,_

 _I am burning brighter_

 _Roaring like a storm,_

 _and I am the one that I've been waiting for_

 _Screaming like a siren_

 _Alive and burning brighter_

 _I am the fire."_

— _I Am The Fire by Halestorm_

* * *

As Jude dropped her bag onto her desk, the contents spilled out onto the dark wooden surface haphazardly. Sighing in frustration, Jude stuffed her belongings back inside before plopping down onto the black swivel chair that sat behind the desk. She wanted to get some work done before she went home; maybe she could manage to solve this stupid case before the weekend crew got to it.

Jude Jones was a detective who worked for the Lebanon Police Department in Kansas. She was one of the youngest—only twenty and fresh from the police academy, and she was extremely good at her job, too. Jude had an eye for detail that many of her coworkers did not have, which helped her work her way up in the world.

"Jones, you've been staring at that screen so hard, I think you might go blind," Amy Ramírez joked. She was an older Latina woman who was very kind and dedicated to her job. Placing a sisterly hand on Jude's shoulder, Amy continued, "I think you should give it a rest, kiddo. You've been working on this case nonstop since we got the call."

Sighing, Jude nodded reluctantly and turned away from her computer. She stood up and smiled at the older woman. "You're right, Amy. I..."

Amy smiled softly. "I get it," she assured the younger woman. "It reminded you of your family. But you don't need to worry, Jay, we'll catch them. I promise."

"Jones, Ramírez!" Captain Torres called, leaning into the bullpen. "Come into my office now, please."

The two women exchanged confused looks before making their way toward his office. There, two rather tall men in suits stood by Torres's desk.

"Detectives, these are Agents McClane and Powell." Captain Torres motioned to the men. "Agents, these are two of my best detectives, Jones and Ramírez. They've been working on the case you're here to investigate."

The case in question was definitely one of the strangest ones Jude had seen in her short career, and it hit very close to home, as well. The victims were all new parents with their hearts ripped out of their bodies. The killings had been going on for a week and a half, but Jude had been getting nowhere.

"Why is the FBI getting involved?" She asked suspiciously.

The taller one, Agent Powell, answered, "We heard about the case, and our superior officer wanted us to check it out." He shrugged apologetically.

Jude bristled. _Why now? This isn't right._ "Alright," she replied reluctantly. "I was about to go and get the autopsy report for the newest victims anyway." With that, she turned on around and stormed out of the office, Amy following after her.

The older woman put a hand on Jude's shoulder and jerked her around to make eye contact. "What the hell was that, Jones?"

"Something's fishy, Amy," Jude told her, her voice hushed. "When this happened to my family, the police were on the case for about six months after the killings stopped before the case went cold. The feds never even bothered to check it out. Why now?"

Amy sighed. She should have known it would be something like this; the younger woman was always a tad dramatic. "I don't know, kid, but they're here now. You might as well suck it up and go do what Captain Torres told you to do."

Nodding, Jude tried her best to smile. "Thanks, Amy. I'll give it a shot." She looked over, noticing the agents leaving the captain's office. "Agents," she called. "You'll be following me in my car."

Without waiting for a reply, Jude walked out to her car, a sleek black 1967 Ford Mustang that she had taken care of since the day she bought it. Driving out of the police station, she looked back to make sure the agents were following her, and sure enough, a beautiful Chevrolet Impala was not far behind her.

When they arrived at the morgue, Jude stepped out of her car, glancing over at Agent McClane, who had whistled appreciatively.

"Nice ride," he told her, a boyish smirk plastered on his face.

"Thank you," Jude told him indifferently. "Come on; they finished the autopsy hours ago."

McClane cleared his throat as they walked down the hallway, trying to get rid of the uncomfortable silence. "So, your name's Jude Jones? That's not really creative." He winced when Powell elbowed him in the ribs

Shrugging, Jude replied, "The head of the orphanage I lived at was obsessed with the Beatles. My full name is actually Jude Penny Lane Jones."

"Head of the _what_ —"

"Detective Jones, there you are!" Dr. Morgan called, appearing at the young woman's side, beaming at her. "I was beginning to worry about you."

Smiling thinly, Jude replied, "I'm sorry to make you worry, Dr. Morgan, but Captain Torres wanted me to bring these FBI agents to look at the autopsy with me."

Dr. Morgan looked over, noticing the tall men standing next to the young (and rather attractive) detective. Clearing his throat, he said, "Right, the autopsy! Well, Detective, Agents, follow me, if you please." He turned into a room on their right, where the newest victims laid on the table. "There's nothing different from the previous victims," he told them, his face composed and serious. "All of their hearts taken right out of their chest. It obviously wasn't done by a tool; it looks more like something just ripped them out with their bare hands."

Jude rubbed a hand over her face. This was not good. The body count was rising quickly, and she was getting nowhere!

"Detective, did you ever have any suspects at all?" Agent Powell asked.

"Not really," she told him. "The people who had a motive didn't have the ability, and vice versa. We considered the idea of an animal attack for a while, but it's too precise for that."

"Well, could we see your list of possible suspects?" Agent McClane asked. "Just to double check," he added when he saw Jude's raised eyebrow.

"Sure," Jude replied suspicions arising in the back of her mind once again. Reaching into her canvas satchel draped across her shoulder, she pulled out a thin manila file. "Here you go. I'd like them back when you're done if you don't mind."

* * *

Sam and Dean Winchester sat on the bed in their motel room, scanning the file given to them by Detective Jude Jones, a storm raging outside their window.

Well, not exactly to _them_ , but to Agents McClane and Powell, whom they were pretending to be.

"It's a werewolf," Dean grumbled to Sam, tossing the paper he was looking at onto the floor. "We know that much."

Sam sighed, rubbing a hand over her face. "Yeah, but we have no idea who it might be. Detective Jones's files helped to narrow it down a little, but we've still got a pretty big suspect pool here."

Dean pulled Sam's laptop into his grasp. "Speaking of Little Miss Detective," he spoke as he typed rapidly into the computer, "I wonder what her deal is."

"What do you mean?" Sam asked, furrowing his eyebrows at his brother.

Not looking up from the laptop, Dean responded, "Well, the kid didn't seem too happy about the Feds stepping in on the case. Maybe she's getting cold feet." He stopped typing and moved the computer's cursor around.

"What the hell?" Dean murmured, eyes glued to the screen.

"What is it?" Sam wondered as he tried to look over Dean's shoulder. "Oh, my god..."

On the screen, there was a photo of a newspaper article titled _New Parents Found Dead._

 _'Earlier this morning, James and Maria Jones were found dead in their home, their child, unnamed at the time, in critical condition with claw marks across her chest. The cause of death seems to be blood loss and the loss of a major organ—their heart. The infant was rushed to the hospital and is currently stable. When she recovers, she will be taken to Miss Catherine's Home For Troubled Children. Miss Catherine, who knew the Jones's personally, took it upon herself to name the girl, calling her Jude Penny Lane Jones._

 _As for the parents, the police are currently investigating their deaths, but many fear that the case may go cold. Unfortunately, there is not enough sound evidence that this is the doing of a person and not just a feral animal. A few townsfolk have taken to protesting this; believing that there is more to this story than meets the eye.'_

The article's date was Friday, October 17, 1997, and, after a little more digging, the brothers discovered that the night prior to the discovery of the Jones's murder was a full moon. Sam and Dean shared a look of sympathy. Now they knew why Jude didn't want the feds on this case—she wanted to solve it herself and bring justice to her parents. That was something they could understand.

"If she keeps trying to solve this, she's gonna get answers she didn't know she was looking for," Dean muttered, shutting the laptop. "She seems like a good kid—there's no way we can let her go down that road."

Sam nodded in agreement. "Definitely. But how?"

"Dunno," Dean shrugged. "We'll figure something out."

They began to settle down for the night, when Sam shot up and looked over at his brother, eyes widened in alarm.

"Tonight's a full moon," he said. The brothers scrambled to grab their guns—maybe they could catch the werewolf before anyone else died.

* * *

Jude yawned as she stepped out of the shower, a towel wrapped tightly around her body. Her short curly hair dripped onto her bare shoulders as she moved to get dressed. Throwing on a sports bra, old T-shirt, and sweatpants, she made her way to the couch. She passed by the small display of pictures she had on the top of her bookshelf, and she found herself stopping to pick one up. It was of her mother, smiling with love in her eyes at something just out of view. Suddenly, there was a loud crack of thunder, and Jude dropped the picture, its glass frame shattering on the wooden floor. Minding the glass, Jude carefully picked up the photo, furrowing her eyebrows when she noticed writing on the back.

 _I don't know why you left, John,_ it read. _All I know is that you abandoned me and my daughter. Don't worry, though, we've moved on. I'm not sending you this to make you feel guilty, but I just wanted you to know. I'm sorry I tore you out of this picture. I was bitter and angry, but I've learned to let some things go._

 _Love,_

 _Maria._

She ran her finger on the edge of the picture, where it seemed that a part of it had been torn out. The tear was very neat and oddly straight, almost unnoticeable. Jude wasn't sure how she should feel. It was such an odd way to find this sort of thing out. Even though she had grown up without her parents, the man she recognized and knew as her father wasn't even her real father. The picture slipped from her hands, and the tears she had been holding back finally slipped out and down her tanned cheeks.

 _CRASH!_

At the sudden noise, Jude jumped up, grabbing her Glock-19 that was sitting on the coffee table. Gripping the gun tightly, she crept toward the sound. She saw a woman kneeling by a broken window; blood surrounding her. Her face was obscured by her long blonde hair as she looked down.

"Get down on your knees and put your hands on your head, now," Jude ordered in a firm voice; one that was oddly intimidating for such a small woman.

The blonde didn't move.

"I said now!"

Suddenly, the blonde woman jerked her head up, her eyes large and green. Jude faltered slightly when the woman opened her mouth, revealing large, sharp teeth; teeth that were definitely _not_ natural for a human. The Blonde stood, raising clawed hands

Quickly, Jude fired a bullet, which quickly made contact with the woman's stomach.

The blonde stumbled back a little, but she seemed more annoyed than anything. She advanced quickly, smirking as she raised her hands in an attempt to grab Jude.

Jude fired several more bullets, but they didn't do too much. The blonde woman grabbed Jude by her hair and slammed her head against the wall. Before the world went black, she thought she heard another crash and faint shouts.


	2. Sam and Dean

**I do not own Supernatural.**

 **Rewritten as of 1/24/2019.**

 _"_ _I'll make it clear:_

 _You'll make it then,_

 _But never here,_

 _Never again_

 _So which one hangs_

 _Police with gangs?_

 _It's all the same."_

 _—_ _Isombard by Declan McKenna_

* * *

Sam and Dean burst through the door, where they saw the werewolf kneeling over Jude.

"Get away from her!" Dean barked, raising his gun.

The werewolf just laughed, lifting Jude up by the shoulders. "Aw, isn't that cute," she taunted. "You're coming to her rescue! But you don't know, do you?" She gasped mockingly, raising her free hand to cover her mouth.

Sam mimicked his brother and raised his gun, too. "Know what?" He asked, his voice hard.

"The Winchesters don't know!" She cackled. "The Winchesters don't know!"

"Stop screwing around!" Dean demanded. "Put the girl down, and this won't get ugly!"

"I'm surprised you didn't notice when you first talked to her," the werewolf continued, ignoring him. "I killed her parents when she was a baby, and I thought I got the right man, but it turns out he wasn't her baby daddy."

Dean gave her a confused look. "What the hell are you talking about?"

The werewolf laughed again. "Wow, you _are_ stupid! How have you not figured it out by now?" She motioned to Sam, who was looking back and forth from Jude to a note laying on the floor written in large, loopy handwriting. "I think _he's_ got it. Y'see, your daddy might've had more flings than you thought. Miss Jones over here is proof of it. You can practically _smell_ the Winchester on her." She pressed her nose into Jude's neck, breathing in deeply.

"You're lying," Dean spat, clenching his jaw. Part of him wanted to believe her, to believe that he and Sam weren't completely alone. Sure, they had Mary back, but she wasn't the same woman Dean knew when he was a kid. But the other part of him, the more rational part, knew that even if Jude was related to them, they couldn't just selfishly drag her away from her safe (as safe as a police detective could get) life into a life of hunting. But then... his mind drifted to Adam, who had already been long gone by the time they met him, and maybe if they had been there for him earlier—

 _No._

He couldn't think like that. He wouldn't.

"Why would I lie?" The werewolf asked in faux innocence. "She's just as much John Winchester's kid as you are."

Jude shifted in the werewolf's grip, her eyes slowly opening.

"And now our sleeping beauty awakens," mocked the werewolf. "Have a nice nap, princess?" She moved her arms so that she had Jude in a choke-hold.

Jude said nothing, clenching her jaw and stiffening her neck. Slowly, she ducked her chin down, creating a little bit of space between the werewolf's arm and her neck.

"She has nothing to do with any of this," Sam tried to reason. "Just let her go."

The werewolf shrugged. "So? She's a Winchester, that's a good enough reason for me." She used her free arm to pat Jude's cheek mockingly. "Y'see, good ol' John Winchester kacked my parents when I was a kid. Heard he left a lady and her kid behind, so I figured I could get a little old-fashioned revenge. I'd rather kill him, but I heard that someone already did that for me."

Suddenly, Jude grabbed the arm holding her in place, stepped to the side, and quickly jabbed her elbow into the werewolf's gut. When she instinctively moved down to clutch her abdomen, Jude jerked her elbow up, clocking her in the face. Stepping away, Jude grabbed her Glock from the floor and raised it, moving her other arm up to protect her face. She continued to step back until there was a good distance between her and the werewolf.

The werewolf simply growled, baring her teeth, and began to run at Jude, only to collapse on the ground as a loud BANG sounded.

Dean held a smoking gun. "You good kid?" He asked Jude.

Clenching her jaw, Jude turned her Glock on the two brothers. "Drop your weapons, hands on your heads. Now!"

"What the—" Dean asked incredulously. "I just saved your _life!_ " As much as he didn't want to, he turned his gun on her, as did Sam.

"You two aren't FBI agents," Jude said, "and you're gonna explain to me what the hell is going on here."

"Please just calm down," Sam suggested.

"I shot that woman in the stomach, but it did nothing to her," Jude told them. "How did you kill her? What is she? You'd better start talking, or I'll arrest you both."

"Okay, okay," Sam agreed, lowering his gun slowly. "Dean." He looked at his brother and motioned for him to do the same.

Dean lowered his gun almost reluctantly. "Alright, kid. We'll talk."

Clenching her jaw, Jude lowered her gun as well. "Talk."

"She," Sam sighed, knowing that this wasn't going to end well. "She was a werewolf."

Jude raised her gun again. "You're insane," She said, stepping back cautiously.

"How else would you explain that?" Dean demanded, motioning to the werewolf. "You've gotta believe us, Jude. We're—"

"Yeah, I heard her," Jude cut him off. "You two are... brothers?" She made no mention of her supposed relation to them. She didn't want to believe it; these men were crazy. But the lonelier part of her reminded her how much she had spent time when she was younger dreaming of having siblings. Granted, this wasn't usually how those daydreams would go.

"Yes," Dean said, growing exasperated. "And we're hunters. We kill monsters like that so they don't hurt anyone else. And, apparently, you—"

"I heard that, too," Jude sighed, lowering her gun slowly. "I, this... _ay Dios,"_ she muttered under her breath before continuing, "this is absolutely crazy." Placing her gun tentatively on her coffee table, she rubbed her face wearily.

"But you believe us?" Sam asked hopefully.

Jude shrugged, shaking her head in disbelief. "I guess I have no choice. As crazy as that sounds, it's really the only plausible theory." She paused, glancing down at the werewolf. "But I do have to do something about her."

"Burn her?" Dean suggested.

Jude laughed shortly. "I dunno what you hunters do, but I can't just get rid of the murderer. I'm a police detective; I have a job to finish here."

Sam nodded. "So, what are you gonna do?"

Smiling, Jude replied, "I have an idea. It shouldn't be too hard."

* * *

"Jude!" Amy called, leaping out of her parked police cruiser and running over to the shorter woman. "Are you okay?"

After Sam and Dean had left, Jude promptly called the police, informing them that a woman had broke into her home and that, in self defense, she had shot her. Dean had left her his gun for the time being, so that the ballistics report wouldn't contradict her story.

"I'm fine, Amy," Jude chuckled softly. "Just a little shaken is all."

"Captain Torres tried to contact the agents, but he couldn't get a hold of them," Amy informed her. "We don't know what happened."

Jude shrugged. "I don't know either, Amy," she replied, yawning. "I really just want to get this all over with and go to bed."

Amy nodded. "Right, right. Sorry." She composed herself, her face growing serious. "Please relay to me the events that happened."

Nodding, Jude said, "The woman came in through my window, and she grabbed me in a chokehold. I managed to escape her grip, grab my gun, and shoot her in the stomach. Somehow, she managed to keep coming, albeit weakly, and attempted to knock the gun from my hand, so I grabbed my personal one, and shot her in the head."

Amy sighed, clenching her jaw. "Oh, come here." She wrapped Jude in a tight hug. "I'm just so glad you're alright," she whispered. She held Jude for a little while longer before she released her and took a step back. "Okay, go to bed, Jude. You've had a long night."

"Will do. G'night, Amy." Jude turned around and went back into her house and into her room, where she found Sam and Dean standing in her room.

 _"¡Mierda!"_ She cried, jumping back. "What are you guys doing here? I thought you left!"

Sharing a look, the brothers shrugged.

"Wanted make sure you're okay before we left," Dean told her unapologetically.

"Thanks," Jude muttered. "Actually, I was wondering, c—"

Dean held up a hand. "We know what you're gonna say, kid," he told her. "And the answer's no."

"Please," Jude begged. "I spent my entire life trying to solve my parents' murder, only to find out that the culprit was a goddamn _werewolf_ , which was something that, up until an hour or so ago, I didn't even think was _possible_. Then, I find out that the man who was killed alongside my mother wasn't even my real father." She took a shaky breath, her eyes shiny. "I just want to make sure someone else doesn't waste their life like I did."

"You're a detective, one of the best at your precinct, apparently," Sam pointed out. "Captain Torres even mentioned how you were one of the youngest graduates from the police academy. I wouldn't call that wasting your life."

Laughing bitterly, Jude shook her head. "The only reason I became a detective was to solve their murder. Torres gave me the okay to start working on their case a few days ago, but now that's over, and if it weren't for you guys, I'd be just as clueless as I was when I was a kid. And dead, too," Jude added as an afterthought. She looked at them, her anguished eyes studying the two men she now recognized as her half-brothers. "Please."

Dean sighed. The kid made a good argument. He looked at Sam, and they silently came to an agreement. "You can come with us on _one_ hunt," he told her. "That's it."

Jude sighed. "I guess that's the best I'll get, huh?" She looked down for a second. "I'll call Torres, tell him I'm gonna take off work for a few days. He'll understand after all the stuff I went through.. But you two have to promise me one thing, at least."

"What?" Sam asked.

"After this, please don't just drop off the face of the earth," she said. "You guys are literally the only living family I have left, apparently. I mean, I know I just met you guys and all, but..."

Dean clapped a hand on her shoulder. "Don't worry, kid," he told her, a small smile on his face. "We won't leave you hanging, but you've gotta understand one thing: our life is dangerous. You can't tell people about us, at all." He let out a startled grunt as Jude suddenly hugged him.

"Thank you," she whispered, her eyes growing wet, and for once, she didn't care.

Sam looked at the two of them, smiling softly before he joined them, hugging the two tightly. The last remaining children of John Winchester stood there, comforted by each other's presence.

* * *

"Wow," Jude breathed as she walked around, looking at what Sam and Dean told her was the Men of Letters Bunker. "This place is incredible." She turned a corner into the library. "Oh my god. Are all those books about the supernatural?" As she continued to look around, she muttered rapidly under her breath in what Sam and Dean assumed was Spanish.

Dean snorted, nudging his younger brother. "Hey, we've got another nerd in the family! Maybe you can geek out over everything with her, Sammy."

Sam and Jude both shot him unamused looks.

"Very funny, Jerk." Sam rolled his eyes, walking over to Jude. "C'mon, Jude, I'll show you around." They walked past the library, Sam already talking animatedly to her as they passed them.

Dean watched them, a melancholic smile on his face. On the inside, he was overjoyed that he and Sam had a sister. When he was younger, he would occasionally imagine what it would be like to have a baby sister, and now he had one. Of course, he was equally terrified that something would happen to her, and it would be all his fault. He shook his head, dismissing those thoughts. Jude had just come into their lives; he shouldn't be thinking about that sort of thing yet. She was one more reason to keep fighting, and Dean was more than okay with that.

* * *

 **A/N**

 **Okay, okay, I know this is kind of short, but bear with me here! I forgot to mention in the previous chapter, but this is taking place during season twelve, and the next chapter is going to be in American Nightmare. So be on the lookout for that! I'll try to have it out in a couple of days.**

 **Anyway, big thanks to everyone who has shown their support to this story; that means so much to me! If you have any ideas or constructive criticism for this story, don't be afraid to shoot them my way! I'm considering the idea of pairing Jude with Jack later on down the line, but I'm not really sure. To be honest, I'm still not a hundred percent sure as to how Jude is even going to interact with Jack yet, but if you guys have an idea, let me know!**

 **Also, if you couldn't tell, Jude is Hispanic on her mother's side. Her mother's surname before she was married was Valdez, and I'm definitely going to address Jude's heritage later on.**

 **Finally, I have a tumblr account under the same username on this site, arcaneocean, and I'd love it if you guys would check it out! And if you enjoyed this chapter, don't forget to follow, favorite, and/or review!**

 **Love,**

 **Nell**


	3. American Nightmare 1

**I do not own Supernatural.**

 _"_ _Blackbird singing in the dead of night,_

 _Take these broken wings and learn to fly_

 _All your life,_

 _You were only waiting for this moment to arise_ _."_

 _—_ _Blackbird by The Beatles_

* * *

Jude walked stiffly alongside Sam and Dean, dressed as a nun. She had only gone to church when Catherine made the children at the home go to Sunday service. She didn't always make them go, and even then, it was a Baptist church, not a Catholic one.

"Father Valdecantos?" Sam called as they were halfway down the rows of pews.

The Father turned from the alter, walking toward the siblings.

"I'm Father Penn of the Dubuque Archdiocese," Sam continued, motioning to Dean and Jude. "This is—"

"Father DeNiro," Dean smiled.

"Sister Moore," Jude said, nodding meekly at the Father.

Sam said solemnly, "We're here to talk about Olivia Sanchez."

Father Valdecantos glanced between the three. "I'm not talking about that anymore." He turned around and started walking away.

"You sure were willing to talk to the press," Jude piped up quietly.

"And the cops," Dean added. "'Priest Claims Demons Walk Among Us.' Boy, that's quite the headline grabber."

"I said, I'm not talking about that—"

"No, we heard you," Dean interrupted. "Don't care."

The Father rolled his eyes. "You think I'm lying," he accused, "like my bishop, like everyone. But I knew Olivia. She was a good person. I watched her get flayed alive by some invisible force. That was the devil's work. I've been told the church doesn't want us talking like that anymore—too old-fashioned. But I know what I saw."

"You see any black smoke?" Dean asked him.

"What?" Father Valdecantos asked, confused.

"We don't think you're lying," Sam assured him. We just wanna ask you a few questions, that's all."

Father Valdecantos paused before replying, "Um, no. No smoke."

"What about sulfur?" Dean continued. "Did you smell, uh, rotten eggs?"

"No."

"You said she was speaking in tongues?" Jude asked, raising her eyebrows.

Father Valdecantos nodded shortly. "Yes," he answered. "It sounded like Hebrew. 'Prok yaw-thi a-law-haw.'"

"Sounds more like Aramaic than Hebrew," Sam commented, looking over at Dean and Jude.

Dean agreed, and Jude titled her head to the side, deciding to trust their judgement as she adjusted her headdress.

"What kind of priests are you?" The Father asked hesitantly.

"The old-fashioned kind," Dean responded, smiling tightly as he turned around. Jerking his head to the side, he motioned for Jude to follow, and she did.

As they continued down the church aisle, Dean spoke, "So no sulfur means no demon. You think the padre's right? We talking about Lucifer here?"

"Little small-time for him," Sam replied. "I dunno. Maybe a rogue angel?"

Jude wished she could help a little bit more, but, unfortunately, she was clueless. Looking over, she noticed that Dean stopped walking, choosing to watch a young boy light a candle with his mother. She knew that he was thinking about his own mother; Sam had informed them that their mother had recently come back into their lives, only to leave them again, saying she needed some space.

"Dean?" She murmured, nudging her brother.

He glanced over at her, blinking owlishly. "Yeah," he cleared his throat. "Uh, I'll make a call."

* * *

Jude watched Dean pace around as he talked to a 'literal, actual angel' named Cas. She was having a little bit of a hard time believing in angels. Her half-brothers assured her that they had the same questions at first, and she trusted their word.

"Wait, wait, wait," Dean said into the phone "what? Are you serious? Yes, Cas, that's weird. It's really, _really_ weird. All right, yeah. Um... thanks for the heads up." He hung up his phone with a beep, and looked down, typing on it.

"I'm a thirteen year old girl," he muttered after a while, ignoring the confused look Jude sent him. He had tried his best to check in on Mary, and even let her know about Jude as best as he could, but he had heard nothing from her. It was beginning to worry him. Did she still love them? Or would she still want the family she had years ago?

"Hey," Sam called as he approached the two, coffees in one hand, a tablet in the other. "So what's the word? Did Cas have anything?"

Dean nodded. "Yeah, uh," he cleared his throat, grabbing a coffee. "Well, good news, uh, there's nothing on angel radio, and Heaven's still on lock-down, so rogue angel is out."

Taking the cup Sam offered her, Jude nodded, following along as she sipped the hot drink.

"Bad news?" Sam asked.

Dean huffed out a laugh before replying, "Cas is chumming it up with Crowley."

"And Crowley is?" Jude asked looking between Sam and Dean.

"A demon," Dean replied, "and a pain in our ass."

Jude nodded. _Of course. Why not?_

"They're hunting Lucifer. Together." Dean continued. "That's right—" he added off Sam's look. "—one's an angel, one's a demon, and apparently, they solve crimes."

"How's that working out?" Jude asked.

"Well enough," Dean allowed. "So Lucifer, the Lord of Evil, Angel of Light, is now the Master of Butt Rock." Pausing, he looked at Jude and Sam's unimpressed stares. "He jumped into Vince Vincente," he elaborated.

Jude laughed. "Seriously?"

Sam nodded in agreement. "The rock star?"

"The douchebag," Dean corrected. "Guy used to roll with purple hair down to his butt and a spiked codpiece." He walked past Sam, going to the car.

"It, it was the eighties," Sam replied.

Dean stopped. "The what?"

"It was the eighties," Sam repeated, chuckling.

"What, are you defending him?" Dean asked, seeming offended. He looked over at Jude, as if to say, _Can you believe this guy?_

Jude held up her hands in mock-surrender. "Don't look at me," She said. "I wasn't even alive in the eighties."

"I'm not defending him," Sam protested, before relenting, "I mean, his third album was kind of... not horrible."

"I hate you so much right now," Dean said in disgust.

"Pretty sure you guys are missing the point right now!" Jude called. "So this guy currently _is_ the devil?"

"Well, I mean, he was always kind of the Devil," Dean informed her, "but, yeah, now it's official."

"Where is he?" Sam asked.

"Rowena blasted him to the bottom of the ocean," Dean replied. "She's a witch," he added off of Jude's questioning look.

"Why?" Jude asked.

"I don't know," Dean said. "Why does Sam love Vince Vincente?" He shot his brother an accusatory look.

Sam cut in, "I don't love—" he sighed, continuing, "anyways, uh, looked at those words. I was right. They are Aramaic." He pulled out a tablet and began to read from it. "'Prok yaw-thi a-law-haw.' It means, 'Save me, oh, God.'"

"Save me from what?" Dean asked immediately.

Sam shrugged, not knowing the answer as he walked to the passenger side of the car, Jude following him to get into the back.

* * *

Walking through the morgue, Jude tugged on the sleeve of her blouse.

"Body's right there, Agents," The man, Carl, Jude distantly remembered, said. "I can get her prepped to your—"

"That's great, Carl," Dean cut the other man off. "Uh, we'll take it from here."

Jude glanced at her brother in confusion as she tugged blue rubber gloves onto her hands. This is what she was good at. Working with the law enforcement, whether it be real or not, was her area of expertise.

"Oh? Okay," Carl said, confused as Dean took the clipboard from his hands. "Um, but, i-it's a weird'un. If you guys need anything at all, I'm—"

Dean cut him off again. "We won't. We won't. Thank you." He led Carl out of the room

"Are, are you sure?" Carl called as Dean shooed him out and shut the door behind him.

As Jude studied the body on the table, she called over her shoulder, "Wow."

"Wow what?" Dean asked her.

"Little, uh, tough on Carl, don't you think?" Sam added, pulling on his own pair of gloves.

Dean joined the two over by Olivia's body. "He's a big boy," he replied flippantly. "He can take it."

Sam and Jude shared a concerned look.

"Are you okay?" Sam asked finally.

"Peachy," Dean replied shortly, looking up from the file.

Sam apparently didn't buy it. "Really?" He asked. "'Cause ever since Mom left, you've been a little, uh, cranky."

Realizing this conversation wasn't meant for her to be a part of, Jude quietly took the file from Dean's hands and began to scan the body, looking at her feet and her hands, where there were severe wounds. She found herself in her own little world, easily blocking out Sam and Dean. Sh—

"Olivia Sanchez!" Dean spoke, pulling the file out of Jude's hand and her mind back to reality. "When the body was found, it had deep cuts on her back as though she'd been whipped, holes punctured through her hands and her feet, and pinprick wounds around the top of her skull. What's that sound like to you?"

"Stigmata," Sam replied, lifting up one of Olivia's hands, displaying a large hole going all the way through it.

"Bingo," Dean said, studying the hand. "Gets weirder," he commented.

Jude furrowed her eyebrows as she examined Olivia's forehead. "How?" She asked.

Sam took the file from Dean and began reading, "'The victim's skull was filled with a goopy mush.'" He and Jude looked at each other skeptically before they looked to Dean.

"That Carl paints quite a picture, doesn't he?" Dean asked rhetorically as he studied Olivia's head. "Alright," he said, straightening up. "What can do all that?"

Frowning, Sam shook his head. "I got nothing."

"Me neither," Dean agreed. "Well, maybe we should focus more on the case and less on the Dr. Phil crap." With that, he turned around and left the room.

Sighing, Sam handed Jude the file as the two followed their elder sibling.

* * *

"It's right over here," the woman, Beth, said as she led Sam, Dean, and Jude into an office. "This is— _was_ Olivia's office."

"Who's is it now?" Jude asked as they came into the office, looking around.

"Kinda mine, now," Beth replied.

Dean motioned to the candle on the desk. "So is that yours?" He asked.

Beth waved a hand. "It's for positive energy," she explained. "I'm a Wiccan."

"Cool," Dean replied shortly, looking over at Sam.

"So how well did you know Olivia?" Sam asked, changing the subject.

"She was my boss," Beth answered. "Is it true what they're saying? That she, you know, killed herself?"

"Well, we're working on that," Sam answered. "Uh, now the day she died, was Olivia acting strange?"

Beth shook her head. "Not really. I mean," she trailed off, reconsidering. "She was getting headaches. Bad ones, like super migraines, but we all knew she was working too hard."

Sam nodded at Jude, prompting her to act.

"Did Olivia have any enemies?" Jude asked, feeling relieved when Sam smiled at her subtly and nodded again.

When Beth looked confused, Dean elaborated, "Somebody who held a grudge, maybe wanted to do her harm?"

Beth nodded. "Yeah." Again, she reconsidered her word choice. "I mean, Olivia was great, but this is Child Protective Services. We get threats all the time."

"From who?" Sam asked.

"Everyone," she replied. "You don't make a lot of friends when sometimes what's best for a family is to split them up."

Dean looked down, and Jude nudged him, silently asking if he was okay. He nodded, glancing to the side.

Sam cleared his throat. "Right. Um, yeah, can we see Olivia's case files?"

"Of course!" Beth nodded. "They're right over here."

* * *

They left the building, Sam holding the box of case files in his hands.

"Well, that was easy," Dean remarked as they made their way to the stairs.

"What was?" Jude asked, her brows furrowed as she looked up at him. Jude was rather tall for a woman, standing at five feet seven inches, but both of her brothers towered over her.

Dean looked back, a triumphant smirk on his face. "What? The Wicca'd Witch of the West in there. Little Miss Positive Energy wanted a bigger office, did a little hoodoo, _boom_. I say we put a witch-killing cap in her ass, call it a day."

Now Jude felt even more confused. "Yeah, but," she cleared her throat. She was out of her element here. Continuing, she said: "You said witches left hex bags, right?" She looked to Sam, gaining a little bit of confidence when he nodded, urging her to keep going. "We checked Olivia's house _and_ the church, and we found nothing."

Dean allowed a small smile on his face. "Nice one kid, but probably just means she's covering her tracks."

They arrived at the car, and Dean began to fiddle with the keys.

"The point is," Sam said, "we're not looking at a witch here."

Unlocking the trunk to the Impala, Dean merely gave Sam an unimpressed look.

"I'm not saying it's not Beth," continued Sam, "I, I'm just saying we need proof. And look, if it's her, I'll shoot her myself."

Dean opened a case of bullets. "Oh, no, no, no, no," he said, shutting the box. "No, I'm definitely shooting her."

"Yeah, if she's a witch, right?" Jude asked, eyes widening. When Dean didn't reply, she looked at Sam, who rolled his eyes and motioned for her to get in the car.

* * *

Sam and Jude stood behind the police caution tape while Dean talked to the coroner and examined the latest victim.

"Coroner says signs of stigmata," Dean reported as Sam lifted the tape for him to walk under, "with a side of scrambled brains, just like Olivia."

"Great," Jude muttered.

"Did you find anything?" Dean asked them as they started walking.

Sam nodded. "Maybe. Kid delivered groceries all over town, so we checked his route against Olivia's case files."

"And?"

"There's one match," Jude replied smoothly.

* * *

 **A/N**

 **Holy shit, I am so sorry I took this long to update? IDK what happened. Thank you guys for sticking with this story, and your continued support means a lot to me.**

 **Anyway, that was part one of American Nightmare, and I hope you guys liked it! I'm working on part two currently, and I'll try to get it up soon. I now have a tumblr, as well! The username is ccandyappleredd, and I'd appreciate it if you guys would check it out!**

 **Also, how do you guys like Jude so far? Let me know your thoughts and ideas, and I'll try to update soon! And don't forget, if you liked this chapter, please favorite, follow, and/or review!**

 **Love,**

 **Nell**


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